


Fire & ice

by mag_lex



Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Doctor!Whump, F/F, Hurt/Comfort, Romance, Whump, softThasmin
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-15
Updated: 2018-12-16
Packaged: 2019-09-19 14:52:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,339
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17003763
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mag_lex/pseuds/mag_lex
Summary: In which Yaz and the Doctor go exploring and things don't quite turn out as expected (aka any excuse for soft thasmin)





	1. Fire

Yasmin Khan hated desert planets. Sand always managed to find its way into her socks and she never remembered to pack sunglasses, making life uncomfortable at the best of times. The last time they'd been on an alien planet was Desolation, when she and the Doctor had crash landed and proceeded to spend half their time on a prolonged boat journey and the other half being chased by sniper bots. Well, the boat wasn't too bad, she had to admit - Ryan and Graham had chosen to snooze the time away but she had stayed awake, talking quietly with the Doctor and learning what she could about the enigmatic alien that had crashed into her life. Whatever the situation, it was hard to be disgruntled for long when the Doctor was around. The woman was truly unflappable and Yaz often found herself drawn to her energy and enthusiasm for life. At the age of 19, Yaz had thought her life was set - a career in the police, life in Sheffield or maybe even a bigger city, where she could work her way up the ladder (and get away from her annoying sister, Sonya). Now, those plans had been put on hold while she spent as much time as she could travelling with her new family, as the Doctor liked to call them.

"Welcome to Elcor 7, fam!" beamed the Doctor, as she strode out of the TARDIS with her arms held aloft. Even though Yaz was behind her, she could imagine the grin on the Doctor's face.

Yaz winced against the sunlight, and was surprised when the Doctor span around to hand her some sunglasses.

"Here you go, Yaz." Yaz couldn't help but smile, although she was unsure how the Doctor knew she needed them.

"Thanks, Doctor," she grinned, noticing an immediate improvement once the glasses were settled over her nose. She sighed in relief and was sure she imagined the Doctor's smile briefly brightening. They held eye contact until Graham, rather unsubtly, cleared his throat, and the moment was broken.

"I smell....barbecue?" Said Ryan, sniffing the air. Yaz rolled her eyes - Ryan was as bad as his granddad and thought with his stomach. Sure enough, they had landed not far from a bustling market containing several food stalls that did look rather appealing.

Almost in sync, the boys started to follow their noses. "Wait, where are you going?" The Doctor exclaimed. "There's some amazin' stuff on Elcor 7 - purple palm trees, honey water, birds the size of houses, you name it!" said the Doctor, as she tried to persuade them to come on her tailor-made safari.

"No offense, Doc, but I could do with some breakfast," said Graham, as Ryan nodded vigorously in agreement. "Some of those stalls look cool, too," Ryan added, always looking for opportunities to check out alien tech.

Yaz, on the other hand, was in no doubt as to how she was going to spend her day, and hadn't even contemplated exploring away from the Doctor's side.

"Suit yourselves," said the Doctor, cheerily. "Just don't touch anything! There's all sorts of dodgy technology in this part of the galaxy." She began to regret her words when she saw Ryan's eyes light up at the prospect.

"I'm serious! Diatomisers are nasty business and you definitely don't want to go near their equivalent of a toaster. If I hadn't regenerated, I could show you the scar." Graham winced and the Doctor felt safe in the knowledge that at least he'd keep Ryan in check. Graham waved Yaz and the Doctor off with an agreement to meet for lunch.

"Shall we?" The Doctor span on her heel to look directly at Yaz, who instantly felt all air and sensible thought leave her body at being the focus of her attention. That unconscious response was starting to get annoying...and embarrassing. Instead of trusting her words, Yaz nodded, more than excited at the prospect of spending some quality alone time with the enigmatic alien who had managed to work her way into Yaz's thoughts more than she'd care to admit.

\-----------------------------------

"Cor, check out that oasis! See those birds?" The Doctor gestured towards what looked like sculptures from this distance. It took her a minute, but Yaz realised they were indeed the size of a small house and clearly coated in something metallic, if the sun glinting off their beaks was anything to go by.

"Wow, they're massive!" she exclaimed. The Doctor grinned at her and Yaz found herself caught up in her infectious enthusiasm.

"Race ya!" shouted the Doctor, unable to resist some friendly competition. Before Yaz realised she was actually serious, the Doctor was off in a blur of blonde hair and a flap of her coattails. She couldn't help but laugh as the Doctor's gangly limbs went flying. Yaz chose to pick her way carefully down the dune, trying to avoid filling her shoes with sand, but the Doctor didn't seem to care as waves of the stuff flew out from underneath her heels. She skidded to a stop at the bottom, turning to see her companion trailing carefully behind. The Doctor scrunched her nose and put her hands on her hips as she waited slightly impatiently at the bottom of the slope.

"You're mad, you know that?" said Yaz as she finally reached the bottom, almost falling in the process. Before she could lose her balance, though, the Doctor had steadied her with a careful arm on her shoulder. Despite the heat, Yaz could feel the solid touch almost burning through her denim jacket.

"Not mad, just...efficient," replied the Doctor, making sure Yaz was steady on her feet before resuming her path towards the pool of water. As she whipped out her sonic, Yaz realised the water wasn't what she had expected - rather than transparent and blue, it was almost like an oil slick of rainbow colours, constantly moving and changing.

Yaz moved the sunglasses up to perch on top of her head to get a better look as the Doctor waved her sonic around, gathering readings. She muttered to herself as she walked off, and Yaz left her to it, preferring to watch the metallic birds drinking by the water. Yaz was just opening the camera app on her phone when she saw something that made her blood run cold. There was...something....emerging from the sand in her peripheral vision.

"Doctor!" She half shouted, half whispered. She daren't take her eyes off the movement she had turned to face.

No response.

She could see what looked to be a tail starting to uncurl and, at the end of it, what looked like a giant stinger. As giant pincers became obvious, Yaz started to feel pure terror taking hold. She was pretty confident she had discovered one nasty scorpion, about the size of her police car back home. God, she wished she was home right now.

"Doctor!" She stage-whispered, fear making her voice wobble as she took a careful step back, and then another. She didn't want to provoke the creature. The mega-scorpion did not seem remotely pleased. While Yaz counted the legs - all eight of them, as thick as tree trunks, she kept moving backwards, slowly and carefully. What was it with arachnids?

"Yaz! There you are, what-"

"Shhhh!" Yaz tried to hush the other woman but it was too late. The arachnid was fully awake and raring to strike, and the next few moments passed in a blur.

The Doctor had this habit - maybe it was instinct - to put herself on the front line, and to ensure that she stayed between whatever meanie they encountered and her companions. Yaz found it charming and terrifying all at once; it was just who the Doctor was, but it made Yaz feel terribly anxious that, one day, things were not going to pan out. The sonic mine that landed them on Tsuranga was bad enough.

It turned out that today was that day. Within seconds of pushing Yaz to one side, the scorpion struck, aiming its stinger with deadly accuracy. Yaz was pushing herself up from the sand in time to see the moment the Doctor was hit, and to hear the shout of pain the Doctor could not hold back. Within seconds, the scorpion was raising its stinger again, ready to strike once more, and Yaz scrambled to her feet.

"Oi!" She shouted, sounding much, much braver than she felt. She put on her police voice in an attempt to distract the nasty creature and draw it away from the Doctor, who was currently flat on her back and apparently in agony.

"Yes, you. Get away from her!"

Mission accomplished as the scorpion moved away from the Doctor. All well and good, but Yaz hadn't quite thought this far ahead.

"Er...." She scrambled, trying to figure out if running would make things better or worse.

But fate had other ideas, because before she could formulate even a half-baked plan, a shadow fell over her and as Yaz looked up, her mouth dropped. It was one of those humongous birds, basically plane-sized at this proximity, and it was swooping down to pick up a snack. She laughed in relief as the scorpion was snapped up and the downbeat of the wings blew sand into her face, but she couldn't have cared less.

"Doctor!" She shouted, running back towards the prone figure on the sand.

"Eurgh, that wasn't fun," the Doctor groaned, clutching her shoulder in considerable pain. Her eyes were still closed and she was a lot paler than Yaz would have liked. In fact, she looked like she was shivering.

"Do you think you can walk, Doctor?" Said Yaz, gently. She hovered, unsure of what to do. Ultimately she opted for putting a hand on the Doctor's forehead, hoping to soothe the stricken woman and also take her temperature. It took the Doctor a few moments to respond as she breathed through the pain.

"Yeah," she panted, "I reckon so."

Without any warning she lurched upwards, wobbling as she got to her feet, but Yaz was there to support her.

"Come on, let's get you back to the TARDIS," said Yaz, placing herself under the Doctor's uninjured shoulder.

Slowly, carefully, they walked, taking a route that was far longer than either would have liked but that avoided anything remotely strenuous. The journey felt like hours but was probably only half an hour. In that space of time the Doctor had gone from being quiet to barely responsive, and Yaz was getting concerned at the increasing weight she was bearing.

"Doctor? Can you hear me?" she said, out of breath with the effort.

"Yaz...Yaz, I'm so sorry," said the Doctor, face contorting in pain as she took another agonising step. "I think that might have been a poisonous Nox scorpion, in which case my organs are shutting themselves down in self-defence. The next step isn't going to be pretty but don't worry, I've been through a lot worse and lived to tell the tale."

The Doctor tried a smile but Yaz could see how much effort it was costing her and her stomach dropped even further.

"I'm here, Doctor. I'm not going anywhere. You just tell me what you need," said Yaz, sniffling a little as she finally caught sight of the TARDIS. Thank God for that.

"I need...." The Doctor groaned as another spasm of pain rippled through her lithe frame. "Argh. I need a very cold bath and a micropatch for the wound." She frowned as she tried to look at her shoulder. "Make that a macropatch. And maybe a cup of tea and a custard cream? Or seven," she gasped, stumbling over the TARDIS threshold with Yaz still by her side.

The TARDIS obliged as soon as they entered, lighting the way to what Yaz presumed were the Doctor's quarters.

"That's it," Yaz encouraged, dripping with sweat and absolutely exhausted. She was running on pure adrenaline at this point, and there was no sign of Graham or Ryan - she was on her own. _I can do this_ , she thought, police training was helpful for all sorts of situations.

Yaz had no time to take in their surroundings as they entered he Doctor's quarters, making a beeline for what must be the bathroom. The TARDIS kept the lights at a soothing level, just strong enough for Yaz to find her way. She deposited the Doctor on a ledge at the side of the bath, rushing to turn on the cold tap.

"Doctor, we need to get these clothes off," said Yaz; then her brain caught up with her mouth and she blushed.

The Doctor didn't seem to notice, however, as she started to toe off her boots. Sand poured out of them but neither of them noticed. Yaz's fingers shook as she eased them inside the Doctor's jacket. This was not how she had envisioned undressing the Doctor. She shook her head as if to remove the thought entirely and focused on the task at hand.

"Sorry, sorry, Doctor," she muttered as the pulled the material away from the site of the sting. The wound looked nasty, and was already turning black. The Doctor's head lolled to one side and her eyes slid shut.

"Hey now, no falling asleep on me," said Yaz, tapping her cheek gently.

The Doctor awoke with a start, obviously confused as her eyes darted around the room, before relaxing when they found Yaz.

"My Yaz," she breathed, a smile gracing her pale face for a second before the pain registered. "Ugh, I forgot, Nox scorpion. Okay, give me a hand will you?"

Yaz helped pull the Doctor up and made quick work of removing her braces and trousers. She figured the quicker she did it, the better, but her heart was hammering as she found her face very close to the Doctor's crotch when she moved to pull her socks off. Meanwhile the Doctor had attempted to pull her shirts over her head with her one functioning arm and failed miserably. Despite the situation, Yaz had to chuckle at her predicament.

"Come here, you," she said softly, helping remove the final layers as gently as she could. Finally, the Doctor stood before her almost naked and that was as good as it would get. Yaz turned off the taps and kicked off her shoes, opting for the easiest way to get the Doctor in safely. She winced as the cold water hit her toes and soaked into her jeans, but it was a welcome relief from the heat outside.

"Yaz...you're...in the bath?" Her face was adorable when she was confused, thought Yaz.

"Yes, Doctor. I can help you better this way." Yaz's tone was no-nonsense and the Doctor didn't put up a fight as she took the proffered hand and stepped in herself.

"Oof that's cold," she said, her teeth chattering, but she felt like pure fire to Yaz. The younger woman made a conscious effort to ignore the swathes of creamy skin on show. She needed all of her brain power.

"Let's cool you down, Doctor," said Yaz as she started to help the Doctor lie down. The only thing was, her plan had backfired. Sure, the Doctor was now in the bath safely, but the only way for her to get submerged without slipping was if Yaz came with her. The decision took seconds.

"I'm gonna join you on this one, okay, Doctor?" The Doctor merely nodded, clearly exhausted and unwell.

"I know you're all about efficiency so I'm going to do this as quickly as I can, okay?"

The Doctor nodded again. Yaz took a deep breath and wrapped her arms around the Doctor, feeling the heat emanating off her instantly.

"Down we go, nice and easy."

They sank into the chilly water, and the Doctor groaned as it bathed the wound. Yaz barely noticed the temperature of the water, focusing on the woman in her arms. She was shivering and moaning with pain, which made Yaz's heart ache, but the tension in her body was easing by the minute, the cold water apparently making it more bearable. Yaz found herself humming as she ran her hands through the water, scooping up handfuls in her left hand to douse the wound on the Doctor's left shoulder. She almost stopped as she heard the Doctor mumble in response and drop her head back to fully rest on Yaz's shoulder.

"Thank you, Yaz," she said, quietly.

Yaz could see that her eyes were shut and the tension in her face was almost completely gone. Her heart hammered in her chest as she let herself relax a little, slowly but surely realising her surroundings. She was exhausted now that the adrenaline had run its course, and yet she was still on edge at the feeling of having the Doctor almost naked in her arms in a bath.

 _Not your ordinary day_.

Yaz chuckled and the Doctor moved against her, apparently trying to get comfortable. Before she realised what she was doing, Yaz smoothed the Doctor's hair away from her forehead and dropped a kiss to the top of her head. She froze in place as the Doctor hummed in response.

"I should go find you that patch, Doctor," she said quickly, but she was surprised when the Doctor shook her head.

"Stay with me, Yaz?" She asked. "Just...five more minutes?"

Yaz was such a sucker for this woman. She capitulated easily, settling down further into the bath, and embraced the fact that she was well and truly screwed.


	2. Rest

The Doctor awoke with a start.

It was so rare that she ever slept that it took her a few seconds longer for her brain to catch up with the events that led her to be where she was at that exact moment in time. _Confusing_.

She recognised the TARDIS at least, which was obviously aware of her regaining consciousness, because she started humming.

Her left shoulder was throbbing and as she looked down, she could see the patch that Yaz had evidently placed on it.

 _Yaz_.

"Yaz?" Called the Doctor, although it came out as more of a wheeze than a shout. She tried to sit up, but it was clear her body was still recovering and she flopped back onto the pillows. At least she was in her room, in what looked to be some rather charming fluffy pyjamas. They smelled of Yaz, and the Doctor felt instantly at ease.

Suddenly, she could hear footsteps racing down the corridor - no doubt the TARDIS had made it clear she was awake.

Yaz burst into the room, closely followed by Ryan and Graham.

"Doctor!"

"Alright there, Doc?"

"You're awake!"

The cacophany of sound this soon after waking up was a little overwhelming, but the Doctor was overjoyed to see her new-found family again. Ryan and Graham were immediately by her side, but the Doctor noticed that Yaz was hanging back and she frowned.

"What happened to you, then, Doc?" Said Graham, not unkindly.

"Always telling us to stay out of trouble and then look what happens!" Ryan seemed to enjoy this turn of events.

The Doctor exchanged some easy banter with the boys, but her mind was distracted by how quiet Yaz was being. Not that it would have been obvious - even when injured, her brain worked so quickly that she was very good at hiding behind her go-to, cheery status quo.

"How are you feeling?" Enquired Ryan, genuinely concerned.

"Ah you know me, a quick nap and I'm right as rain!"

Ryan and Graham exchanged a look.

"What?" Said the Doctor, suspiciously.

"Well, I wouldn't call it quick, Doc," said Graham, as tactfully as he could. Ryan took the opportunity to walk over to Yaz and put a comforting arm around her shoulder. The Doctor's stomach fell. Her body was still rubbish at telling her what was going on, and she still experienced the occasional fizzing feeling in her stomach, which she put down to regenerating as a different sex for the first time in hundreds of years. That this seemed to happen whenever she and Yaz were alone, however, she had decided to ignore for the time being.

"How long?" Said the Doctor, feeling suddenly nauseous and wondering what she'd missed.

"Two days, give or take," said Graham, glancing over at Yaz, before continuing.  
"We waited at the market for a couple of hours but had a feeling something wasn't quite right, even accounting for your usual tardiness-"

"Hey!"

Graham just raised an eyebrow and waited for the Doctor to be quiet before continuing.

"So we came back to the TARDIS and found Yaz trying to get you out of the bath. You were dead to the world and in a bad way, Doc. So we managed to get you out, and Yaz got you both dry while we looked for some medicine, that patch on your shoulder? The TARDIS showed us where to find it. Then...well, you mentioned something about your organs shutting down to stop the poison spreading? Yeah, they did that."

Graham left it there. Now that the Doctor noticed it, he seemed mildly shell-shocked. She felt sick, and even moreso when she saw Yaz leave the room without a sound.

Ryan noticed her watching.

"Yaz...she never left you, Doctor. We had to make her sleep after the first day, and she was so worried."

The Doctor felt a pang in her hearts and decided she needed to speak to Yaz as a matter of urgency.

"Thank you, Ryan, Graham, for looking after me so well. I can't imagine it will have been a very fun experience, for any of you, and I'm so sorry you had to bear that burden. I feel much better now," she said, smiling at them both in reassurance. Honestly, she had felt better, but the thought of Yaz in distress was not something she could ignore any longer.

"Would one of you mind giving me a hand up?"

\---------------------

After assuring them she could walk just fine, thank you very much, the Doctor hobbled her way towards Yaz's room. The TARDIS hummed at her almost constantly the entire way.

"I'm fine, stop nagging!" She shushed, sighing in relief when she finally found Yaz's door. Gosh, that took a lot longer than usual.

She knocked timidly, suddenly aware that she had no idea what to say.

"Just a minute," came Yaz's reply, but the Doctor could hear her soft sniffles from the other side of the door. Never one for patience, she pushed the door open, and Yaz's protests stopped when she realised who had come to visit.

"Doctor," she breathed, wrapping her arms around herself.

The Doctor felt her heart breaking at the sight of her wonderful Yaz in tears. She carefully made her way to the bed Yaz was sitting on, before plonking herself on the edge of it, next to the other woman.

"You should be resting, Doctor," Yaz protested, unable to stop her eyes scanning over the woman in front of her as if checking she was truly real.

"I've had enough rest for the next six months, Yaz," came the response, but Yaz was having none of it.

"No, you haven't. Have you seen yourself? You look like death warmed up."

The Doctor shrugged without thinking and immediately regretted the move, unable to stop the gasp of pain as her face scrunched up in annoyance. She looked miserable.

Yaz's face almost crumpled before she rearranged her expression and frowned at the stubborn woman in front of her.

"Right, you're lying down in this bed, right here, right now," she stated, moving to push the Doctor into her bed. The past three days had been something of a rollercoaster and Yaz had pretty much abandoned any second thoughts she'd normally have. Sure, the Doctor was up and moving around right now, but for a terrifying eight hours, Yaz had thought she was going to die when one of her hearts had stopped beating.

The Doctor tried to protest but it was very feeble. "Yaz, we need to talk."

Yaz stopped mid-movement. "You're right," she sighed, "we do. But not right now, you need to get well first. You really have been through the wringer, Doctor." Having successfully manoeuvred the Doctor into bed, she bent down to pick up her legs and lifted them carefully onto the mattress.

"As have you, by the sound of things," said the Doctor in response, defiantly sticking her chin up. Even lying in Yaz's bed, half-alive, she was trying to take control of the situation.

"You need to rest too, Yasmin Khan."

Yaz gulped. The Doctor rarely used her full name and it had the desired effect. She felt the Doctor entangle their fingers and gently pull Yaz into bed with her, seemingly unaware of the implications of them sharing it.

Yaz was powerless to resist - she was suddenly exhausted - and as she lay down next to the Doctor, she used her free hand to make sure they were both fully covered by the duvet. Ignoring the fact they were still holding hands, she fussed over the Doctor, making sure she was comfortable, before settling back herself and finally turning to face the eager eyes that had watched every move. They seemed to burn right into her very core.

"We do need to talk, Doctor," she murmured, squeezing the hand in hers. "But I'm not sure I can, right now?" The statement came out as more of a question, and she was relieved when the Doctor nodded in response and squeezed back.

"Just...let's rest for now, okay?"

"Full of good ideas you are, Yaz," the Doctor sighed, and was almost instantly asleep, her eyes sliding shut as soon as her body relaxed.

Yaz took the opportunity to watch the other woman at rest, using her free hand to smooth hair away from her face. There was still a furrow in her brow, and Yaz tried soothing it with her thumb. It was a move reminiscent of what she'd done when the Doctor was at death's door, and she opted to replace that memory with this one. Finally content for the first time in days, Yaz let herself relax and join the Doctor in sleep.

The TARDIS dimmed the lights and locked the door, ensuring that nobody would disturb the two charges in her care.


	3. Ice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which we reach a resolution...for now. And a bit of backstory for that wonderful rainbow scarf.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, that wrote itself a lot quicker than planned. I'm not sure if I'll continue this particular story (in which case the rating will most definitely change :)) or wrap it up here - but either way, I'm definitely not done with soft Thasmin...to be continued! Thank you for the wonderful comments and kudos!

Yaz's dreams were tortured. She dreamt of the Doctor dying, or of the Nox scorpion striking the Doctor again, and again, and again. Vaguely, she could feel herself tossing and turning in bed, and remembered that she was not the only occupant. She jerked awake, heart pounding, and looked to her side. The Doctor was still out cold, lying on her back.

Yaz held out a shaking hand to rest on the gentle rise and fall of the Doctor's ribs. She could feel her hearts pounding underneath her palm as she moved her hand upwards, trying to reassure her foggy mind that the other woman was indeed alive.

She didn't expect the Doctor to lay a hand on top of hers, and she froze, feeling caught. But the other woman remained asleep, and Yaz settled, keeping her hand in place as she drifted back to sleep.

A few hours later, Yaz awoke again, only to find she was no longer trying to keep a respectable distance - she was fully spooning the Doctor. The feel of the Doctor's warm body so close to hers gave Yaz instant butterflies and she immediately felt guilty, realising the Doctor had no idea what was going on. _Time to wake up, Yaz_.

Slowly, she extracted her arm from the Doctor's waist and tried to leave the bed as carefully as possible, deciding that a cold shower and strong coffee were in order.

As she shut the door, she didn't see the Doctor's eyes fly open.

\-----------------

"Nice to see you on your feet again, Doc," said Graham as he munched on a piece of toast. The Doctor smiled as she entered the galley, feeling slightly sheepish as she realised they'd been waiting patiently for her to emerge.

"The feeling is very mutual, Graham," said the Doctor, warmly. "I owe you all my life," she said softly, as she looked at each of her companions in turn. She looked at Yaz last and lingered, swallowing hard at the soft look in Yaz's eyes.

"Fancy a cuppa, Doctor?" said Ryan, urging a steaming hot mug into her hands. "Six sugars, just the way you like it," he winked, and the Doctor beamed in response.

"Ten points for you, Ryan," she said, leaning back against the counter, not even bothering to let the tea cool before downing half of it.

"Hmmm...you know what would go really well with this?"

Ryan rolled his eyes and passed her a plate of custard creams.

\------------------

"So...where to next, fam? I leave the choice with you, because Elcor 7 was obviously a bad suggestion," she joked.

Ryan unsubtly jerked a thumb across his neck and the Doctor realised it was far too soon to be making that joke. She was surprised when Yaz laughed, though, apparently happy to move on from their most recent adventure and onto the next one.

"Do you think we could pop home for a bit first, Doc? Only, it's my best mate's birthday and he was planning a little get-together down the local."

Graham nudged Ryan in the ribs.

"Oh, er, yeah and I...er...need to get my Christmas shopping done," said Ryan, evidently impressed that he could come up with an excuse that quickly.

"What about you, Yaz? Would you like to go home? It might be good to have some time off," said the Doctor, wary of the shadows under Yaz's eyes.

Yaz looked borderline offended.

"No way, Doctor. I can't - we can't leave you alone right now, what about your shoulder? You've only just recovered, and how would we know you'd look after yourself alone?"

The Doctor looked ready to argue back, if only to prove that she was perfectly fine on her own, always had been and always would be, when the TARDIS decided to intervene. A commotion from the console room had the gang spilling out of the kitchen to investigate.

"Wait....wait!" Said the Doctor, frowning as she peered at the screen. "We're back. Sheffield, December, 2018. You clever girl," she said, running a hand along the console.

"Well that's settled then, we'll leave you to it for the next few days?" Said Graham, already wrapping his scarf around his neck before giving Yaz a friendly hug. The Doctor saw him whisper something into Yaz's ear, and saw Yaz flush a light pink, but her hearing was not quite back to normal and she couldn't figure out what he'd said.

Once Graham and Ryan had waved goodbye, there was nothing between them.

Both Yaz and the Doctor looked at each other for endless seconds, unsure of what to say. There was so much to discuss, and the Doctor liked to talk - no, loved to talk, it was her greatest weapon. But she didn't need a weapon. She felt like she needed a shield.

"So....where to, Yaz?" She said, distracting herself by fiddling with the TARDIS controls.

"How about somewhere a bit colder?" Said Yaz. "It's winter back home, and I really miss the seasons," she said, wistfully.

A lightbulb went on in the Doctor's head.

"I know just the place," she beamed.

\----------------

The contrast with Elcor 7 couldn't be any more dramatic. Yaz watched her breath puff out in white clouds, embracing the fresh air whole-heartedly. She loved cold weather. It was always easier to warm up than cool down, and cooler weather always cleared her head. And with the events of the past few days, Yaz definitely felt like she needed a breather.

"Here we are, then! The winter city of Cirrus, named after its perennial cirrus cloud formations," said the Doctor, as in awe as Yaz at the spectacle before them. It was stunning.

"Well...more of a town than a city," the Doctor amended, since the population couldn't have been more than 10 000 people.

Cottages stretched as far as the eye could see, with woodsmoke emerging from hundreds of tiny chimneys, far into the distance. Evergreen trees lined the streets and horses and carriages seemed to be the preferred mode of transportation, from what Yaz could tell.

"What year is this, Doctor?"

"2964. We've timed this perfectly, Cirrus was one of the few resorts left in this galaxy before a nasty civil war kind of ruined things for everyone. Oh look, ducks!"

Like a shot, the Doctor was off in the direction of a lake dotted with ducks and row boats in equal measure, which Yaz had to admit was very aesthetically pleasing, if not as pleasing as the Doctor herself. When she finally caught up with the Doctor, she was admiring the plumage of the lesser-spotted bilby, muttering something about the females of the species having much prettier colouring than the males for once.

While the Doctor was distracted, Yaz took the opportunity to extract a slim parcel from within her coat, and cleared her throat. She took a deep breath as the Doctor turned around, mid-sentence, and lost her train of thought at the sight of Yasmin Khan holding aloft something...gift-wrapped.

"For me?" the Doctor asked, pointing at herself. She had to be sure, it was always a bit embarrassing when she got social norms wrong.

Yaz merely nodded, looking slightly nervous.

"Yaz...you shouldn't have," chided the Doctor, but she was already unwrapping her present with alarming alacrity. She discarded the wrapping hastily before her eyes grew comically wide.

"Wow...Yaz, I love it!" She exclaimed, holding aloft the rainbow-coloured scarf like it was made of pure gold.

Yaz added to her mental tally of how many times she knew she was in love with this woman.

She reached out to take the scarf back from the Doctor, offering wordlessly to wrap it around her neck because she was pretty confident that her shoulder was still not fully healed. The Doctor bent her head, aware of the slight height difference, and Yaz carefully draped the material around her neck, making sure it wasn't too tight but would keep her warm.

"This has got to be the best present I've ever received. Thank you, Yaz," said the Doctor, genuinely pleased.

"In this form, maybe...you must have received some much better things over the course of 2000 years," Yaz deflected, blushing at the compliment. The Doctor reached for her hands.

"No. I'm dead serious, Yasmin Khan."

"You know...when you say my name like that, I feel like I'm in trouble, Doctor," said Yaz, focusing on their joined hands. The Doctor was always so warm, she thought.

"Look at me, Yaz," murmured the Doctor, the soft cloud of her breath cushioning her words.

Yaz looked up and felt her brain short-circuit. They were standing incredibly close, and there was nothing but quiet around them and the feel of cold, cold air. She shivered, a mix of nerves and a genuine chill, and before she knew it the Doctor had opened up her coat and was pulling Yaz inside.

"Come here," she murmured, "let me warm you up. I'm basically a permanent hot-water bottle, y'know," said the Doctor, smiling when Yaz let out a laugh.

"Is this okay?" She asked, feeling her hearts thump a little harder. Which was embarrassing when Yaz's ear was right next to them.

"More than okay, Doctor," said Yaz. "I...I didn't know if we were ever going to have another journey together. This is better than I could have imagined," she said, trying desperately not to think of how upset she had been just 24 hours ago. She braved a look up at the taller woman, bracing herself by putting her hands tentatively on the Doctor's waist. _All or nothing_. Yaz let out a mental sigh of relief when the Doctor seemed not to mind.

"I owe you more than anyone else, Yaz," replied the Doctor. "You saved me, in more ways than one. I didn't think I was capable of feeling...well, what I feel right now. I haven't felt that in many, many years." The Doctor looked a lot older than Yaz had ever seen, and she wondered if she was getting a glimpse of the real person behind all of that bravado.

Yaz swallowed hard, not trusting herself to say anything remotely sensible.

"Yaz?"

Was there a tremble in her voice? Or was Yaz reading far too much into this? No, she definitely wasn't, the Doctor was looking at her strangely and they were sharing a coat for goodness' sake. This was definitely new territory for both of them.

"Yes, Doctor?"

"Would you be horribly offended if I...you know...er..." The Doctor trailed off, blushing slightly, shifting her feet.

Yaz giggled at the Doctor being so uncharacteristically lost for words at such a crucial juncture.

She would have to be brave enough for the both of them.

Instead of replying, she tilted her head up, capturing the Doctor's soft lips with her own. She knew the gamble had paid off when she felt the Doctor respond, pulling her coat tighter around Yaz as if protecting her from the outside world. Yaz ran her fingers up the Doctor's suspenders - she'd always wanted to do that - as she deepened the kiss. They reluctantly broke apart moments later and Yaz had the beginnings of tears in her eyes as she realised what had finally happened.

"What is it? What's wrong?" The Doctor looked concerned as she lifted her thumb to wipe away a tear from Yaz's cheek.

Yaz felt like she'd won the lottery.

"Absolutely nothing. Do that again?" She whispered, already moving to kiss the Doctor as they got lost in one another once more.

**Author's Note:**

> So...this new series has re-awakened my love for Doctor Who, and i couldn't help but jump on the Thasmin bandwagon #sorrynotsorry. Thought I'd amuse myself since we aren't going to see them for most of 2019, and will see if I can use it as an excuse to get writing fic again!


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